The latest edition of Blues Blast Magazine has a Featured Blues Review for Doug MacLeod and A Soul To Claim:
“After many visits to Memphis with the Blues Music Awards and other work with the Blues Foundation, Doug MacLeod decided to move to that area and settle down in Tennessee, giving up the West Coast for a home on the Mississippi River. This album is inspired by his move and his new home. It is a fine set of a dozen new songs highlighting the grand story telling abilities of this master blues man. No one can weave a story line into melodic lyrics and a fine musical accompaniment like Mssr. MacLeod can. Here we have a mix of Doug delivering to us some truly outstanding pieces of music for us to savor and enjoy over and over again. … The title tracks gets things started. It’s a dark and cool cut about addiction; the devil is looking to claim souls and he takes them when you get hooked. It’s electric, has a great groove to it and presents a great story and a highly listenable hit song for all to enjoy. Next up is a whimsical Doug MacLeod sort of tune entitled “Be What You Is.” “If you do what you ain’t, you ain’t what you is” is the premise of this cut, another great philosophical gem from MacLeod. His body of work often offers up stuff like this song; I, like all his fans, love them. … It’s hard to think that after all this great music there would be more gas in the tank to create new and amazing stuff. MacLeod never rests on his laurels and here we see and hear him giving us an amazing new album of music that will once again turn heads and garner attention. Kudos to this old sailor and great human being for giving us another superb album of music that we can enjoy again and again.”
—Steve Jones, Blues Blast Magazine